


Don’t Leave Me Here Alone, Like They Did

by SiederTreeStudios



Series: FullMetal Alchemist Works [1]
Category: Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types
Genre: Edward Elric needs supervision, Gen, Mustangs Team - Freeform, Parental Riza Hawkeye, Parental Roy Mustang, Riza Hawkeye needs to supervise the children, Roy Mustang is a Dad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-19
Updated: 2020-04-19
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:22:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,596
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23737537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SiederTreeStudios/pseuds/SiederTreeStudios
Summary: Edward has a bit of an issue. And that issue come to light in a less than healthy fashion. Chaos, as usual, ensues. Parental! Roy and Riza comfort while Ed freaks out. (Panic Attack warning just in case!)
Relationships: Alphonse Elric & Edward Elric, Edward Elric & Riza Hawkeye, Edward Elric & Roy Mustang
Series: FullMetal Alchemist Works [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1709860
Comments: 10
Kudos: 184





	Don’t Leave Me Here Alone, Like They Did

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first OneShot I’m posting here! Finally, I’ll be able to escape the long Tumblr posts and be able to just link it here! I’m sure I’m not the only one who will be pleased with that. Without further ado, enjoy!

"Al! Hey Al, where are you?!"

The dull gray and dark blues of the streets of Central at this hour where interrupted by the flashy red coat and golden hair that flew in the wind as a young alchemist ran through the streets. Al had gone off who knows where and Ed had been searching for a little under an hour now. Central was quieter than usual, due to it being 11:00 pm at night, and the cold wind nipped at the boy’s nose but he continued undaunted, his feirce golden gaze darting through alleyways and buildings alike. Needless to say, the large suit of armor with a boyish voice was no where to be found, and Ed was not freaking out about it.

After all, Al said he was going out for a while and he probably isn't back yet for whatever reason. But it shouldn't be that long because Ed went searching for him. It had been 3 hours since he said that. And left. And the anxiety barreled in. And he started his spiral of what if's along with it. And—

Well, point is, Al is gone and Edward needs to find him. That undisputed fact kept him running, not noticing or caring about the ache in his muscles as he had been searching for quite some time now. And this hasn't reminded him of anything in his past, no sir, no way. But that's why he needs to find Al. To fix the past, like they promised each other they would. So Ed continued onwards, frantically scanning the area as he moved.

He'd called everyone he could think of first. He even called Mustang—as much as the man annoyed him—but it was like he vanished off the face of the Earth. No one had seen or heard from him in the last 3 hours. So Ed ran on, calling out for Al and searching every place he could think of. His hands shook, but he kept moving forward, because that's all he could seem to do. It was like if he stayed still for a second, he would go crazy. The thoughts in his mind gathered like the shadows on the streets, his footsteps echoing loudly in an attempt to block out the what if's in his mind. If he stopped they would consume him, and there’s no telling what would happen then. So he kept on, unwavering until a single word cut through the dark thoughts at the edges of his mind and made its way annoyingly to the forefront.

"FullMetal."

This single syllable appeared as suddenly as the man who said it. As annoying as the speaker was, Ed couldn't help but be relieved for the distraction from his thoughts. The shadows in his mind were pushed to the edges, as Ed looked at Colonel Mustang walking out from the shadows. The Flame Alchemist narrowed his eyes at Edward, searching the blondes face.

Ed, disliking being studied, shoved his hands in the pockets of his red coat, attempting to seem nonchalant as he said, "Colonel. What are you doin' here?"

"You're brother is missing Elric, and you can't cover the entirety of Central City on your own. And seeing you out of commission is not something I can afford right now. So, I figured I'd help you along with the others." Mustang said, leaning against a wall, not taking his eyes off of Edward. "Have you checked with everyone else?" "Everyone. No one's seen him for the past 3 hours. You'd think it'd be easier to find a 7-foot suit of armor, but I've been looking everywhere. He’s just gone." Ed said, aware of the dark what-if's slowly coming back to haunt him, reaching out and tugging him back to the edge of panic. He shook off those thoughts to the best of his ability, saying bluntly, "Anyways, I've got to keep looking, so—"

"I'll come with you." Mustang said, continuing before Ed could protest, "You'll find a way to get into trouble again and cause me more paperwork, and if Alphonse has been kidnapped, I'd prefer to keep property damage to a minimum."

"You're one to talk..." Ed muttered, shrugging and saying, "Fine. But keep up, I'm not waiting for you."

The two walked, Ed walking ahead and taking in the sights around him. He would prefer to run, but the Colonel was walking, and having someone around to make sure he doesn’t lose it completely is generally a good idea. He provided a good enough distraction that Ed’s thoughts were at bay, but the thoughts were close enough to fuel him to continue onward. Occasionally, he'd yell for Alphonse, but no response would come. He kept on walking though, his footsteps clearing his mind with every loud step before he'd get too close to considering any of the possibilities circling his head.

He was so focused on his task that hadn't noticed Mustang had stopped until he said, "FullMetal, wait."

Ed stopped, turning to Mustang and impatiently replied, "What?!"

Mustang pointed towards an alley, where Hawkeye and the others emerged, walking forward. They’d been scouring the city as well, or at least that’s what Ed presumed.

"Heya, chief." Havoc said, waving with Breda.

"We haven't found him, sir." Hawkeye said, standing to attention in from of Mustang.

"We haven't found him either, sir. We checked around this area. He can't have gone that far, and we stuck to the area he could likely cover, but he isn't here." Falman said. Ed clenched his fists. He didn’t have time for this! 

"I've got to find him." He said, shaking his head and turning away.

"But Ed, you can't go looking by yourself..." Fuery said, pushing up his glasses and fumbling nervously. Ed barely managed to smother a flinch, the nervous habit reminding him painfully of Al.

"You won't be looking by yourself. Alphonse will turn up, I'm sure. For now, we need to get back to HQ and get some rest. If he isn't back by morning, we'll go looking again." Mustang said, making a point to look at Ed.

"I need to find him Mustang! What if he's been kidnapped?! Or those homunculi, what if they got him?! I can't risk losing him, damn it!" Ed protested, his eyes wild. The possessive tendencies he had worked to keep at bay were resurfacing, only fueling his rage. Worst of all, the dark thoughts were beginning to swirl again, damn it, he needed to move, to take him back—

"No Edward. Alphonse is fine, he can hold his own. You need to calm down." Hawkeye said, stepping forward. Ed turned to glare at them. Mustang’s eyes flashed a warning: _Listen to us for once_. Ed didn’t care though. He couldn’t bare the thought of Al dying, or worse, leaving him like that bastard he used to call his father. He didn’t need another memory of a turned back. So he acted.

"I need to find him." With that, he ran off, ignoring the calls from the others. He ran, knowing he'd need to look for Al wherever he could. He made twists and turns down the labyrinth that was the back alleyways of Central Amestris. He vaguely heard Hawkeye call to him, but he knew he'd have to find Al, so he didn't stop. Didn't dare stop to consider the thoughts that plagued him. Ran from the darkness in his mind, lest he go mad from it.

He turned a corner, seeing Breda and Havoc try to reach for him. He was too quick for them though, he ran past them and zigzagged through the streets of Central. _I need to lose them_ , he thought in the midst of it all, seeing Falman and Furey on his tail, with Breda and Havoc close behind. He couldn’t afford getting caught by them and being dragged back to Mustang.

He turned into an alley way, knowing that his main concerns were where Hawkeye and Mustang were. They were the only ones that really had a chance at stopping him, and he’d already established that that’s _not going to happen_. He kept his eyes peeled for them along with Al, keeping a mental list. He wanted to keep the transmutations to a minimum as well, as the light was far to bright in the dark streets of Central. It would attract too much attention. So he’d have to get the high ground without it. _Fine_ , he thought, _if that’s what it takes to get Al and lose the dogs, I don’t care what I have to do_.

Caught up in his thoughts and distracted, Ed switched directions into yet another alley, only to see Mustang at the end of it, the light from behind casting an annoyingly long shadow. His commanding officer had an annoying tendency to be right about where people will go. Worst of all, he was blocking the exit of the alleyway. "That's enough, FullMetal. You’ll wear yourself out trying to find Alphonse this way." Edward turned back, only to see Hawkeye there. He's trapped. Damn. He scanned the surrounding area, but this alleyway was annoyingly clean of anything he could use. "I'll die if that's what it takes to find him." He stalled, wracking his brain for a plan.

"You can't be serious, after everything you've sacrificed?! Would Alphonse want to see you this way, freaking out the moment he leaves?!" Mustang yelled, causing Ed to flinch back, effectively losing his train of thought. Lovely.

"I have to find him! Can't you see, he's all I have left! I’m not going to lose him too. " Edward said, his voice fading a little as the one thing he swore not to do, he did: consider the possibilities. First that dead-beat bastard of a father, then Mom, and now Alphonse? Is everyone going to leave him? He probably deserves it, this pain he's feeling. Another price to pay, for going against the flow of the world, in accordance with equivalent exchange. His failures weighed down heavily on his soul, taking every inch of his headspace. He tried to fight the suffocating thoughts filling his brain, but to no avail.

In desperation, Ed attempted to run past the Colonel entirely. A dumb move, on his part. The most infuriating thing, in highnsight, was that he didn’t even really have to try to stop him. He simply grabbed Ed’s wrist, stopping him effectively and held it firmly, replying to Ed’s glare with a silent No and the subtle concern growing in his eyes. Ed tried to yank his arm back, but to no avail.

Sudden understanding passed through Mustang’s eyes at that moment, causing Ed to put a guarded expression up. No way is he going to break down and have some touchy-feely chat with Mustang of all people. He still didn’t like being read either. And he _still. Didn’t. have. time. For this_. “What?!” Ed spat. “Let me go, I need to be there for Al.”

“Edward, you need to settle down and think for a second. Alphonse can’t have gone far, not by his will anyways. We are looking into it, but you have to stay calm or we’ll have to take you off this case.” Hawkeye said, stepping in smoothly. Mustang loosened his grip, choosing instead to stand as he was, guarding the exit.

“You can’t just take me off the case! He’s my brother damnit, I won’t just—”

“We can and we will if we have to, Fullmetal. And we have no trouble making sure that you won’t go investigating all on your own. Look at yourself, you tried to just run past me. You’re in no shape to do much of anything except worry.” Mustang said, his gaze hardening. “Besides, I’m more concerned about this reaction. Is this normal for when your brother is missing?”

“Quick nitpicking at my psyche! This doesn’t matter, don’t you get it?! He’s gone and I have to find him!”

“A point you keep arguing, and yet haven’t convinced us in the slightest you need to find him now. And the truth is, we will likely need to find some leads to follow up on, something you can’t effectively do in your state of mind.” Mustang replied, stepping towards Ed, his eyes narrowing. Ed stood his ground though, no way in hell was he going to back down without a fight. “So what you should do is come with us so we can investigate this matter further, instead of running around haphazardly around Central City in a panic. Tell me, what’s the logic you have against that?”

Ed almost groaned then and there. He was right, the intuitive bastard. He really couldn’t argue. But that didn’t stop the spread of panic slowly overtaking him, causing him to begin to shake slightly. His breath was coming shorter and shorter. He couldn’t breathe, why couldn’t he bre _athe?! He can’t breathe and he can’t see and his heart hurt and it was a **ll going so fast yet so slow and he just couldn’t breathe-**_

Ed would recall later that he had fallen, clutching his chest as he made panicked, incomplete, breathless statements. Mustang was the first to act, ordering Hawkeye to get the others as he fell to his knees next to the boy, grasping his shoulders as he attempted to help the boy. His instincts from Ishval kicked in, reminding him of how to deal with panic attacks. He grabbed Ed’s flesh hand and placed it on his chest, instructing the boy to follow his breathing.

_‘Idiot, I can’t even breathe, how am I supposed to follow yours?’_ Ed thought faintly amongst the turret in his head. But he tried anyways, barely aware of the tears, the uncomfortable concrete, the awkwardly slumped position he was in. He knew he could pass out, or calm down, and he really didn’t feel like passing out, so he begrudgingly followed instructions. Mustang rattled off facts he knew, talking about simple nothings in hopes he could provide something else to focus on. Slowly but surely, the world became clearer, his heart slowing down to normal pace as he slumped down farther, panic fading into pure exhaustion. Ed could barely focus, but he managed to croak, “ _Mustang_...” as darkness overtook him.

When the others caught up to Mustang, he was found carrying Ed out of the alleyway, not seeming to care about the weight of his auto mail. Ed was taken to Mustang’s house, where when he awoke, Alphonse was found. The suit of armor got caught up in his own little skirmish, and when Ed saw him, he visibly relaxed. Mustang watched Ed until he finally reached his limit and exclaimed, “I’m not going to fall apart if you leave me alone, you bastard.”

Mustang smirked wearily at that. “Funny. I remember telling you something similar yesterday.”

Ed didn’t have a response to that.

“I guess we both have people to protect.” Mustang said smoothly, making a move to walk away before pausing and saying, “You don’t have to search alone, Fullmetal. Believe it or not, some of us have gone through the same thing as you have. As difficult as it might be, try to trust that Alphonse can handle himself, and don’t wear yourself down like that. Some people don’t want to see you hurt.”

“Yeah yeah, I know.” Edward brushed him off. The warmth that spread through his heart and the feeling of safety was priceless as Ed allowed himself to smile softly at a turned back, similarities suddenly seeming irrelevant.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope y’all liked that! Not much to say here, but uh. Ed needs support. Mustang is a dad and a worry wort. Riza has to keep everyone in line. Mustangs team is placing bets that Ed and Al see Mustang as a father figure. Life is good.


End file.
